Myth Buster

Although pregnancy is not all flowers, sunshine, and rainbows, I have LOVED being pregnant.  Yes, I had some difficult days, but overall, it has been a wonderful experience.  Many women get to 35 weeks and are ready for baby to be out of them.  I personally am okay with being pregnant for as long as BC needs to be inside of me.  BC's health is infinitely more important than my comfort level - and the closer BC gets to 40 weeks, the healthier BC will be.

That being said, at our last doctor's appointment, I was 2 centimeters dilated and 90+% effaced.  The doctor told us, "I will not be at all surprised to see you back here by the end of the week in active labor."  Thus, my Heroic Husband and I went from not expecting BC for two more weeks, to expecting BC in a few days.

By the middle of the week, I was having constant and hard non painful Braxton Hick's contractions - about 1 minute long, 7 minutes apart.  One evening, we were convinced that BC was coming either in the middle of the night or early the next morning.  BC did not come.

I decided to look up "natural methods to induce labor" - just to see what people said.
OH MY GOODNESS.  There are SO many things that people recommend.  Of the 25 natural labor inducers I found, I have been doing 16 of them quite consistently - without even knowing I was "naturally inducing labor."  However, BC is still inside...  Hhhmmm...

I have walked, done light exercise, eaten spicy food (well, as spicy as I can go), enjoyed lots of pineapple, had many afternoon cups of raspberry leaf tea, danced, bounced on my exercise ball, taken bouncy car rides, climbed lots of stairs (especially at the doctor's office), stayed busy during the day, stayed upright doing tons of squats and lunches, rested at night, added curry to my food, and had many a good cry - just to name a few.

I do admit, I have not tried acupuncture, acupressure, homeopathics, castor oil, evening primrose oil, black cohosh, eggplant, or other herbal remedies - and I do not think that I am going to.

It has been very entertaining to read all of the "success" and "horror" stories from women who have tried these methods - especially the castor oil.  Yes, HH and I are SO ready to meet little BC - words cannot even describe how excited we are.  However, God has had BC's days planned out before the foundation of the world.  Who am I to try and "force" BC out?

Ecclesiastes 3:11
Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time.  He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.

No matter how hard I try, BC will come when God is ready for BC to come.  Until then, I am going to continue walking and eating pineapple - but not because I think they will make BC come sooner - because they are good for me and BC - and I enjoy them : )

Super Nesting

On this rather chilly - frigid would probably be a more appropriate adjective - I am  officially 38 weeks pregnant.  BC has been "headed" in the right direction since December - and I have been slightly dilated for two weeks.  We have a doctor's appointment later today to find out our "progress."

At 36 weeks, when the doctor said I was dilated 1 centimeter, my to-do list exploded.  My house was clean, and the baby's room was just about ready - but suddenly, all of that was not quite good enough.  For the past two weeks, I have been a crazy, super nester.  My Marvelous Mother came down for a few days to help - and my Heroic Husband has been assisting in every way possible.  It feels so relieving to almost have everything "just right" - although I know deep down that my list will never be "completely" checked off : )

As part of my Bible Study, I have been reading through the gospel of Luke.  The story of Martha and Mary, from Luke 10, caught me.

While they were traveling, [Jesus] entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.  She had a sister named Mary, who also sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what He said.  But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, and she came up and asked, “Lord, don’t You care that my sister has left me to serve alone?  So tell her to give me a hand.”  The Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but one thing is necessary.  Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her.”

ONE thing is necessary.  Yes, I feel better that the tops of my doors are cleaned, but was it necessary?  Have I let other things get in the way and distract me from what is necessary? 
Lord, I know that I am viewing an abundance of "things" as "necessary" right now - but please help me to focus on what is truly NECESSARY.

Working on BC's nursery